Differing county policies are springing up over the issue, meaning that a brownie might be deemed legal in one county, while in another, the same brownie might get a person thrown in jail and convicted of possessing a "narcotic."

It's uncertain whether Uncle Herb's botanical-extraction machine is operating with or without the blessing of Gila County Attorney Bradley Beauchamp, who didn't return repeated calls.

Pima County Attorney Barbara LaWall tells New Times that she can't imagine sending a qualified patient's cookies and brownies to the busy crime lab just to determine whether they contain a concentrate. On the other hand, she's decided that patients still can be prosecuted for hashish.

A cannabis-infused cookie

Mjpresson

Hashish

"We believe the drafters of the AMMA did not intend to legalize hashish for medical-marijuana purposes," LaWall wrote in an e-mail. "Had they intended to do so, they would have made some reference to cannabis, hashish, or extracted resin."

Montgomery and some prosecutors are going further, claiming that anything that smacks of "resin extracted" is prosecutable with or without medical approval. He's been warning medical-marijuana users for more than a year that he might prosecute them for possessing extracts of any kind. In the past couple of years, he and Yavapai County Attorney Sheila Polk, another ardent foe of marijuana decriminalization, have charged suspects with "narcotic" violations based on the possession of candies and other food items containing concentrates, though the suspects in these cases were manufacturing and selling the products without state approval.

No bona fide medical-marijuana users or dispensaries have been busted yet (that New Times is aware of, anyway) for hashish or food with extracts. But now, with dispensaries taking off, that soon could change.

Not surprisingly, one of the biggest fans of medibles happens to be an award-winning local chef. We'll call him Jamie, because he'd rather not have his real name published.

Chef Jamie says he discovered marijuana edibles about a year ago, after a friend recommended that he try the plant to ease the symptoms of a medical ailment. He had used marijuana on and off, but now, taking the drug is a significant part of his life. It helps with his condition — and, yes, he enjoys the buzz.

You might think that Jamie, as a chef, makes amazing culinary dishes with marijuana — and he sometimes does. But he still likes the cookies and candies he finds at dispensaries. He's tried everything from pot gummies ("they come on more slowly") to pot Pixy Stix ("they'll get you pretty good").

What he really loves, though, is using his skills to make great tincture.

He starts by cooking an ounce of buds in an oven at 350 degrees for five minutes. (Quick botany lesson: Marijuana plants contain THC-A, which has no psychoactive effects. The plant must be well-dried or heated to lose the "A," for acid, and convert the chemical to brain-tripping THC.) Jamie then soaks the buds overnight in a strong, clear liquor, like Everclear, and later strains out the plant matter. The next step, as Jamie puts it, is to "activate the alcohol with the marijuana." This involves cooking the liquid for 20 to 25 minutes at 170 or 171 degrees, which is just below the boiling temperature for alcohol.

"I do not suggest people try this at home," he insists, adding that he's a professional and has access to a commercial facility. "You can start a big fire in your [home] kitchen."

When finished, the chef has a liter of extremely potent tincture.

"My dose for myself is half an eye dropper," he says. The effects last for hours.

He's still experimenting to find the perfect strain of marijuana that will make his symptoms better and not get him too high — something that happens every now and then to users of medibles. Sensations from the drug may take 30 minutes to two hours to come on. Believing the medible isn't working, a patient might take more and soon find themselves reeling. Inexperienced users ought to be especially wary of overdoing it on medibles, which may fill the user with uncomfortable, anxious feelings, he says.

Experts point out that the increased potency of concentrates increases the risk of taking the drug. Though there's no evidence anyone's died from ingesting concentrated marijuana, common sense dictates that if you don't like the effects of marijuana, doubling or tripling those effects may be a bad idea.

The biggest danger from marijuana concentrates may come from amateurs trying to make them.

About 2 p.m. on March 10, in a small apartment complex in Edmond, Oklahoma, 26-year-old Derek Wayne Hofford managed to cause an explosion big enough to blow out his windows. When investigators showed up, he told them he'd been cooking chicken nuggets in a skillet while simultaneously filling a can of lighter fluid with butane. Police soon realized he'd been attempting to cook hash oil.

Though Hofford ended up with a five-year deferred sentence after a plea deal, he theoretically could have received a much harsher penalty. Under an Oklahoma law passed in 2011, making hashish or other forms of concentrated marijuana can get you two years to life.

Police have arrested about a dozen people under the law, though all took plea deals that enabled them to avoid long prison sentences.

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This one is for DONKEY_HOTAY, vindicated at last by the CO-Bar... It was a long time coming, but now here is the official slapdown of marijuana McLawyer ethics by their own ethics committee, in a Formal Opinion adopted Oct. 21, 2013 and just released:

The Ethics Committee of the Colorado Bar Association (CBA) has formally ruled that it is a violation of ethics rules for attorneys to advise or assist their clients in violation of federal marijuana laws, even if the activities are legal under state law. According to the Colorado Rules of Professional Conduct 1.2(d), "a lawyer shall not counsel a client to engage, or assist a client, in conduct that the lawyer knows is criminal...."

The Opinion states that, despite the fact that "Colorado voters approved a constitutional amendment decriminalizing the possession and use of small amounts of marijuana for recreational use on November 6, 2012", " marijuana continues to be illegal under federal law for all purposes."

The CBA Ethics Committee Formal Opinion states:

"Nevertheless, unless and until there is a change in applicable federal law or in the Colorado Rules of Professional Conduct, a lawyer cannot advise a client regarding the full panoply of conduct permitted by the marijuana amendments to the Colorado Constitution and implementing statutes and regulations. To the extent that advice were to cross from advising or representing a client regarding the consequences of a client’s past or contemplated conduct under federal and state law to counseling the client to engage, or assisting the client, in conduct the lawyer knows is criminal under federal law, the lawyer would violate Rule 1.2(d)."

Thanks to Donkey_Hotay for calling this one from the beginning!

Will the Greedy Lawyers in Arizona be as venally corrupt in counseling, aiding and abetting the Continuing Criminal Enterprises of their drug dealing clients?

Will the Arizona Bar take swift action to stop this gross malpractice?

PHOENIX — Medical marijuana users have no constitutional right to grow their own drug, a trial judge has ruled.

Judge Katherine Cooper of Maricopa County Superior Court threw out a challenge by two men to a provision in the 2010 voter-approved Arizona Medical Marijuana Act that says only those living farther than 25 miles from a state-regulated dispensary can cultivate the plants.

She said there is no basis for their claim that the provision limits their health-care rights.

But Cooper left the door open for the men to raise a separate challenge that the 25-mile rule amounts to a violation of their rights under constitutional provisions guaranteeing everyone equal protection of the law. She said, though, they have yet to make a case for that claim.

The 2010 law allows those with a doctor’s recommendation to get a card from the state allowing them to obtain and possess up to 2½ ounces of marijuana every two weeks.

That law also envisioned a system of state-regulated dispensaries to sell the drug. But it also says anyone who lives farther than 25 miles from a dispensary could grow up to 12 plants at any one time.

Initially, that exemption applied to everyone because it took the state more than a year to license dispensaries. But state Health Director Will Humble said just about all of the approximately 40,000 medical-marijuana cardholders in Arizona now live close enough to a dispensary.

***

Once again proving that the STUPID STONERS and their Incompetent Marijuana McLawyers who wrote Arizona's MMJ law were TOO FUCKING CLUELESS to learn from the MISTAKES that other states like Colorado and California made, utterly FAILING to actually establish any private RIGHT to use, possess or grow marijuana.

"Already, Coloradans have more than a decade of experience with concentrates like hashish and marijuana edibles. Amateur hash-oil cooking isn't allowed."

Translation: Colorado still maintains FELONY DRUG MANUFACTURING statutes -- just like Arizona -- against EVERY individual private marijuana user, caregiver or grower who would dare make a SINGLE GRAM of hash oil ... thank's to the lobbying of the Greedy Big $$ Dispensary Cartels and their hired McLawyers like lyin' Brian Vicente.

Essentially, legal officials claim that the medical-pot law provides no protection for extracts, concentrates, or the food and drinks that may contain them. Under their theory, qualified patients and dispensary officials could be charged with a felony for possessing or making marijuana extracts.

"We believe the drafters of the AMMA did not intend to legalize hashish for medical-marijuana purposes," LaWall wrote in an e-mail. "Had they intended to do so, they would have made some reference to cannabis, hashish, or extracted resin."

EXACTLY !!

Once again, the clueless illiterate stoners and the low-rent stoner lawyers COMPLETELY FAIL to write a CLEAR, CONCISE, FUNCTIONAL marijuana law/amendment/proposition, leaving MASSIVE ERRORS for the continued prosecution of marijuana users, caregivers and growers.

Arizona must have hired or used the same Colorado morons who wrote those dysfunctional pieces of crap - Amendment 20 and Amendment 64.

I'm in a substance abuse class at a local mental health provider and there are THREE people in just our group alone which have convictions. There are numerous substance abuse groups out there in the community that are well known as to their location. I'm guessing that if a couple of intrepid reporters went there and hung out a little bit at each one during their break, they would get a lot of good stories from innocent people who are being railroaded by this corrupt piece of shite! (every substance abuse class usually has a "smoke break" at least once during their two hour session.)

One of the guys had pot planted on them by the cops while he was unconscious after a vehicle accident and even though he had his cannamed card with him he was years later charged for possession of a narcotic!

They should let all these people who do herbs go, they know damn well they aren't "narcotics".

BTW - These people who run the substance abuse classes won't let anyone talk about how unjust these law are in the classes because they will miss the income from court referrals if the laws are changed to decriminalize them.

It is a measure of the corruption of our esteemed Attorney General that he would declare, on one hand, that smoking cannabis is unhealthful, and that he will not enforce federal law which outlaws that form of the herb, while at the same time determining that extracts of cannabis, even ones that don't have any hallucinatory effects, are prosecutable by his office.

This whole war on drugs is a complete and utter disaster for the United States and the world and should be declared WON and a stand down of all law enforcement made immediately.

Enforcing laws against these drugs only increases their supply (by making them more profitable - basic economics tells us this) and destroys lives of people who would otherwise be functioning addicts and contributing members of our society.

The war on drugs could be said to be one of the worst disasters to hit our country in our history given the numbers of people who have been negatively affected by it.

People use drugs to pursue their own individual happiness. The only thing this Country is half-way good at is providing a platform for people to do so. We must recognize that this is such a basic human trait that we need to get the heck out of the way with our punitive laws and let the best drug (i.e., the best high and least amount of negative effects) compete with all these other crappy drugs which do nothing but destroy the lives of their addicts.

The basic scientific fact is that the human body produces drugs that affect our mood, psyche and emotions in much the same way as any manufactured substance would do. While I feel that the best "Happy" drugs are the ones we produce in our own bodies, some people may lack the ability to produce adequate quantities of these substances within their bodies or haven't discovered the ways we can do it (yoga, exercise, meditation, food and herbs, etc.) and should be afforded the opportunity to legally pursue their own happiness in their own way. This is the American Way.

These drugs have only been declared illegal to make money for someone: mental health professionals, drug counselors, police, pharmaceutical companies, politicians, drug kingpins, etc. Making them illegal only increases the profit motive and makes the MORE available and cheaper for the users. Take the laws away and that price support goes away - hell there would probably not be enough money in the market to make it profitable to manufacture and distribute!

This is just more of the continuing battle by those who refuse to recognize the will of the voters in Arizona. Our state persecutors, excuse me prosecutors, will use anything they can to cause harm to others who are trying to obey this law. They will lose in court and likely cause great harm to others before the courts stop them. They are typical of the minority that demands attention like a kindergarten kid throwing a tantrum. They are not to be trusted as they do not have our best interests at heart. Their immaturity, and the immaturity of people like BubbleBurster should not be tolerated. It is probably best that we just ignore them and let them play by themselves until someone's big brother (the courts) thumps some reason into them... Until that time, leave them in isolation so they can be intolerant without hurting others.

I've been growing a small amount of cannabis for years. As a woman with back pain, it has helped tremendously to use marijuana edibles. I have a ebook that details great recipes for easy marijuana oil, delicious Cannabis Chocolates, and tasty Dragon Teeth Mints. Marijuana is a very healthy food if taken as an edible, not smoked. You can safely control how much or how little an effect of relief you want. It is a gentle and safe way to handle pain. There is a great $2.99 e-book on medical marijuana: MARIJUANA - Guide to Buying, Growing, Harvesting, and Making Medical Marijuana Oil and Delicious Candies to Treat Pain and Ailments by Mary Bendis, Second Edition.

This article mentions that new Times is unaware of anyone that has been charged under the old statute and WAS in possession of a valid medical marijuana card.

Well, I am being charged with narcotics possession under the old statute thanks to a grand jury indictment and a misleading (at best) prosecuting attorney.

I would LOVE to tell my side of the story to the Phoenix New Times and my attorney is currently representing MULTIPLE cases that involve the old narcotics statute and edibles or concentrates/extracts.

To make it even more interesting of a piece, I am not only a registered medical marijuana patient, I am also a registered dispensary agent. 0060963DAHJ557620001 exp 6-14 <dispensary agent card # for verification purposes.0004786QPHS447354002 exp 5-14 <patient card #

This is what you get when petty tyrants, their enforcers with guns,
and spineless bureaucrats are in control of healthcare decisions. They
are quite literally taking medicine out of the mouths of children to
support of their lying ways and keep the blood money flowing.

This
is what you get when gutless cowards stand BEHIND their lying laws,
because their not man or women enough to stand up for the TRUTH.

And
since so many of you hypocrites call yourselves Christians, you might
want to think about the fact that lying is a sin (bearing false
witness), and doing purposeful harm to others with your lies when the
truth is at hand, is a mortal sin. But then, that whole Christian thing,
is just part of your political strategy for your next election isn't
it. God wont mind that your sinning as long as those checks keep coming,
right!

Lung Cancer Risk of One Marijuana Joint a Day Equals Daily Pack of CigarettesThose who smoked the equivalent of one joint a day for 10 years had a 5.7 times higher lung cancer risk than nonsmokers even after adjusting for tobacco use, reported Richard Beasley, M.B.Ch.B., of the Medical Research Institute of New Zealand here, and colleagues in the Feb. 1 issue of the European Respiratory Journal.

What people are clamoring for is the MIND ALTERING aspect of marijuana. Companies have prospective employees take DRUG TESTS to weed out dopes on marijuana because they are cognitively impaired and not "with it". It's no wonder that Obama is IGNORING the federal law making marijuana illegal.

Obama is doing everything to take America DOWN and people are cheering him on with this issue. Look up the history of China and see how ILLEGAL drugs brought THEIR COUNTRY DOWN. The same is happening here. We are financially bankrupt. Unemployment is at an all time high. Sex is constantly pushed at our kids and more people are in poverty today that in our history - all because of Obama's policies.

Obama is a loyal follower of Saul Alinsky. Putting a happy"compassionate" face on abortion worked so now they are abusing compassion to legalize marijuana to help destroy our country.

@__McShyster__ Posting these studies because I know they'll stick in your craw and you'll never accept them. Many more studies just like this, showing cannabis may be the most important substance ever in treating cancer, if you want to do a little research. Or you can keep your head firmly implanted in the sand. Or fingers in your ears yelling la la la la. Or whatever technique you use. LOL

@KennyKiklar A solvent no matter whether it is water, butter, oil, alcohol, butane, or ether is required to make an extract. What is in everyone's best interest is to make sure that there are no contaminants in any preparations that are made. Every other state that has wrestled with the legality of extracts has come to the same conclusion. We should follow Colorado's lead here and do what is in the best interests and the health of those who consume these substances rather than discussing what we like or don't like. You can make a concentrate without a solvent (for example, by physical separation of the trichomes, like with a screen) but by definition you cannot make an extract without a solvent. The state seems to argue that use of a solvent is improper although the law clearly allows preparations of the plant. They don't seem to object to use of the plant as flour or physical separation of the plant to concentrate the trichomes (that contain the canabanoids) although they insist that hashish is illegal. Medical marijuana patients are allowed to use all parts of the plant although most do not. Initially, hashish, which is a concentrate of the plant was made by collecting just the trichomes. The state's argument is just plain silly, it would allow you to eat oranges (which contain vitamin C) but not allow you to take vitamin C if it was extracted from oranges because they insist that it is dangerous and illegal... BubbleBurster, on the other hand, argues that if we make chemicals artificially that are like those in the plant and have them approved by the FDA they are good but the plant itself is bad...??? I think that both ignore what the people approved and that the courts are not likely to accept either argument.

@Necropolis Remember the words of St. Burroughs: "When you're doing business with a religious son of a bitch, get it in writing. His word isn't worth shit, not with the Good Lord telling him how to fuck you on the deal."

@BubbleBurster Your articles are vague, and make inferences based on partial evidence, and are in no way conclusive. So, the studies continue. As for the rest of your comment, it indicates you are a cluess troll who has no connection with reality other than your mindless hate of President Obama. However, those views are consistent with low/no information haters. I have to agree with KevininPHX - you're an ignorant and clueless person. You might take your name to heart - burst the bubble of right-wing ignorance you inhabit. Maybe even smoke a joint! You might unclench a bit.

The LEGAL part of the drug AVAILABLE by a legitimate doctor's prescription for MANY years that stops nausea and vomiting from chemo is being CONFUSED with the other parts of marijuana the are MIND ALTERING."

Conversation over, go grab a botany book and come back when you have a clue.

This single statement clearly proves your complete and total ignorance on which you speak.

You don't even understand the compounds in cannabis and how they work within the body.

"A new study from Tel Aviv University has found thatTHC, the psychoactive component in marijuana, can protect the brain from cognitive damage, especially following injury.Medical marijuanahas been found to be beneficial in treating pain, insomnia and lack of appetite, but this study has found that THC also helps the brain protect itself before and after an injury.

Professor Yosef Sarne at Tel Aviv University’s Adelson Center for the Biology of Addictive Diseases at the Sackler Faculty of Medicine discovered this as he was performing experiments to discover the biological makeup of marijuana and tested his hypothesison lab mice. His results are published in the journals Behavioural Brain Research and Experimental Brain Research.

According to Professor Sarne, only a very small dose of THC is needed to protect the brain from long term cognitive damage brought on by injury, seizures, or even damage from toxic drugs. Without this barrier of protection, brains are susceptible to cognitive defects and neurological damage.

This isn´t the first time THC has been found to protect brain cells. Previous research observed that, when administered 30 minutes before or after a brain injury, the psychoactive chemical could create a protective effect on the brain´s cells. Professor Sarne´s research, however found that the same benefits could be achieved if small doses of THC can be administered up to seven days before an injury or three days after. Only a small amount of THC is needed, which is about 1,000 to 10,000 times smaller than the amount found in a joint."

lol what a joke this guy is, and none of you tore him up?? how sweet, must be a bunch of pot heads :)

@BubbleBurster are you aware that there has never been ANY scientific evidence supplied that cannabis has a "MIND ALTERING" aka psychotropic effect on the user.

and I'll let the masses deal with your ignorant statements and claims.

"careful, when arguing with a fool, from a distance it is hard to tell whom is who."

just let me know if anyone needs any medical ...of fuck it...

here, play catch up...

Cannabis was first documented in the Chinese pharmacopeia by
Emperor Shen Neng in 2737 BCE and added to the US Pharmacopeia in
1850. Surprisingly it only took 877 years for the US to catch up but
when it did, cannabis was everywhere. 1850-1915
Marijuana was widely used throughout United States as a medicinal
drug and could easily be purchased in pharmacies and general stores.
The first regulations regarding cannabis came in 1906
when the U.S. Pure Food and Drug Act is passed, regulating
the labeling of products containing Alcohol, Opiates, Cocaine, and
Cannabis, among others.

Then in 1914 the Harrison Act in the
U.S. defined use of Marijuana (among other drugs) as a crime. Fast
forward to 1916 and the United States Department of
Agriculture (USDA) chief scientists Jason L. Merrill and Lyster H.
Dewey created paper made from hemp pulp, which they concluded was
"favorable in comparison with those used with pulp wood"
in USDA Bulletin No. 404. From the book "The Emperor Wears
No Clothes" by Jack Herer the USDA Bulletin N. 404
reported that one acre of hemp, in annual rotation over a 20-year
period, would produce as much pulp for paper as 4.1 acres (17,000 m2)
of trees being cut down over the same 20-year period. This process
would use only 1/7 to 1/4 as much polluting sulfur-based acid
chemicals to break down the glue-like lignin that binds the fibers of
the pulp, or even none at all using soda ash. The problem of dioxin
contamination of rivers is avoided in the hemp paper making process,
which does not need to use chlorine bleach (as the wood pulp paper
making process requires) but instead safely substitutes hydrogen
peroxide in the bleaching process. ... If the new (1916) hemp pulp
paper process were legal today, it would soon replace about 70% of
all wood pulp paper, including computer printout paper, corrugated
boxes and paper bags. However, mass production of cheap news
print from hemp had not developed in any country, and hemp was a
relatively easy target because factories already had made large
investments in equipment to handle cotton, wool, and linen, but there
were relatively small investments in hemp production.In 1915-1927
cannabis begins to be prohibited for non-medical use in the
US. Prohibition first begins in California (1915), followed by Texas
(1919), Louisiana (1924), and New York (1927).

Fast forward ten years 1937 U.S. Congress passed
the Marijuana Tax Act which criminalized the drug. In response Dr.
William C. Woodward, testifying on behalf of the AMA, told Congress
that, "The American Medical Association knows of no evidence
that marijuana is a dangerous drug" and warned that a
prohibition "loses sight of the fact that future
investigation may show that there are substantial medical uses for
Cannabis." His comments were ignored by Congress. One part
of the testimony for Congress to pass the 1937 act derived from
articles in newspapers owned by William Randolph Hearst, who had
significant financial interests in the timber industry, which
manufactured his newsprint paper as well as friends within the DuPont
family who's chemical products were used to process the cotton and
timber amongst other things Hearst manufactured. In 1938 the same
U.S. Company DuPont patented the processes for creating plastics from
coal and oil and a new process for creating paper from wood pulp.
Back to the medical side of things now that you have a educated
perspective of the history of cannabis in this country. In1972
the Nixon-appointed Shafer Commission urged the use of cannabis be
re-legalized, but their recommendation was ignored. U.S. Medical
research picks up pace. Proposition 19 in California to legalize
marijuana use is rejected by a voter margin of 66-33%.

In 1976 the U.S. federal government created the
Investigational New Drug (IND) Compassionate Use research program to
allow patients to receive up to nine pounds of cannabis from the
government each year. Today, five surviving patients still receive
medical cannabis from the federal government, paid for by federal tax
dollars. At the same time the U.S. FDA continues to list marijuana as
Schedule I meaning: "A high potential for abuse with no accepted
medical value."

In fact from1977-1981 U.S. President Carter,
including his assistant for drug policy, Dr. Peter Bourne, pushed for
decriminalization of marijuana, with the president himself asking
Congress to abolish federal criminal penalties for those caught with
less than one ounce of marijuana. Didn't quite go that way or we
wouldn't be having this discussion now obviously. The in 1986
President Reagan signed the Anti-Drug Abuse Act, reinstating
mandatory minimums and raising federal penalties for possession and
distribution and officially begins the U.S. international "war
on drugs." Fast forward two years and in 1988
U.S. DEA administrative law Judge Francis Young finds, after thorough
hearings, that marijuana has a clearly established medical use and
should be reclassified as a prescriptive drug. His recommendation is
ignored. Seeing a pattern yet? Ignorance must be bliss.Now jump
forward ten years to 1996 and our neighbors
California (the first U.S. state to ban marijuana use, see 1915)
became the first U.S. State to then re-legalize medical marijuana use
for people suffering from AIDS, cancer, and other serious illnesses.
A similar bill was passed in Arizona the same year but was
subsequently ignored by those in charge of its implementation. This
was followed by the passage of similar initiatives in Alaska,
Colorado, Maine, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Washington
D.C., Hawaii, Maryland, New Mexico, Rhode Island, and Vermont. More
interesting tid-bits you might not know about this medicine, in 1997
the American Office of National Drug Control Policy commissioned the
Institute of Medicine (IOM) to conduct a comprehensive study of the
medical efficacy of cannabis therapeutics. The IOM concluded that
cannabis is a safe and effective medicine, patients should have
access, and the government should expand avenues for research and
drug development. The federal government completely ignored its
findings and refused to act on its recommendations.

1997-2001
In direct contradiction to the IOM
recomendations, President Clinton, continuing the Regan and Bush "war
on drugs" era, began a campaign to arrest and prosecute medical
cannabis patients and their providers in California and elsewhere.
Once again the government had paid for a medical study and ignored
its findings and conclusions.

Marijuana use has also been linked to schizophrenia. In a study of 50,000 Swedish military draftees, the use of marijuana during adolescence was associated with a 30% increase in risk of developing schizophrenia.

The study also showed a higher risk of schizophrenia with more frequent marijuana use. The researchers of this study found these results were independent of personality traits and the use of other drugs.

Another study involved close to 2,000 participants in the Baltimore area who were interviewed in 1980 and then again between 1994 and 1996.

The researchers assessed the participants for signs of marijuana abuse and symptoms of depression. Researchers defined abusers of marijuana as people for whom the drug caused social problems, such as inability to perform at work.

The results showed people who initially did not have depressive symptoms but abused marijuana were more than four times as likely to have depressive symptoms at the follow-up date than those who did not abuse marijuana. The depressive symptoms associated with earlier marijuana abuse included suicidal thoughts

Chronic users of the drug often find themselves lacking motivation. Some even seem depressed or have other signs of mental illness. But does chronic marijuana use lead to psychiatric problems? Or do people suffering from mental illness use marijuana to self-medicate?

Research now indicates that marijuana use increases the risk of depression, as well as schizophrenia.

In an Australian study, researchers interviewed 1,600 14- and 15-year-olds, then again seven years later. Participants filled out a questionnaire, reporting on their use of marijuana and symptoms of depression or anxiety. A surprising 60% of the participants had used marijuana by the time they were 20. The researchers found that the young women who had used marijuana weekly as teenagers were twice as likely to have depression as a young adult than women who did not use the drug. Daily use as a teenager was associated with four times the risk of depression for young women.

Also, among the young adults, women who used marijuana daily were five times more likely to experience depression and anxiety than those who did not use the drug.

LOL! You are not the author of ANY research. LOL! You must be on a pleasant high. Truth doesn't change. You only illustrate how out of touch you are with ANY up to date research that is objective.

You are full of yourself. Stay lost in your drug induced world trying to rationalize it. You fool no one but fellow dopers. I actually feel sorry for people like you and the "old hippie" etc.. It's sad to see someone reach for drugs for a MIND ALTERING experience because their life is pitiful. For a few hours they feel better about themselves. Without drugs they can't cope with their lives. It is truly sad.

There you go again! Unable to be civilized - "STFU" is typical of those who suffer from LOW cognitive ability.

I am informed but you don't LIKE what the truth is, so you have a hissy fit.

Lung Cancer Risk of One Marijuana Joint a Day Equals Daily Pack of CigarettesThose who smoked the equivalent of one joint a day for 10 years had a 5.7 times higher lung cancer risk than nonsmokers even after adjusting for tobacco use, reported Richard Beasley, M.B.Ch.B., of the Medical Research Institute of New Zealand here, and colleagues in the Feb. 1 issue of the European Respiratory Journal.

What people are clamoring for is the MIND ALTERING aspect of marijuana. Companies have prospective employees take DRUG TESTS to weed out dopes on marijuana because they are cognitively impaired and not "with it". It's no wonder that Obama is IGNORING the federal law making marijuana illegal.

Obama is doing everything to take America DOWN and people are cheering him on with this issue. Look up the history of China and see how ILLEGAL drugs brought THEIR COUNTRY DOWN. The same is happening here. We are financially bankrupt. Unemployment is at an all time high. Sex is constantly pushed at our kids and more people are in poverty today that in our history - all because of Obama's policies.

Obama is a loyal follower of Saul Alinsky. Putting a happy"compassionate" face on abortion worked so now they are abusing compassion to legalize marijuana to help destroy our country.

Truth removes fear. Apparently truth is YOUR enemy. It is YOU who cowers and thrives on misinformation and lies that are destroying you. You are too blind to see it. It's like the alcoholic who can't admit they have a problem and hand other with other alcoholics that live in denial and need to escape reality.

The "rest of society" doesn't need more dumbed down people. We have enough already. We don't need more dysfunctional people. MIND ALTERING drugs such as marijuana will destroy you. You are too blind to see that and reject it with "venom" that is unbecoming to you.

" Congratulations. You are, without a doubt, the most ignorant and clueless person I've ever had the displeasure of stumbling across."

Name call away, KevininPHX. Lay off the weed or is life too difficult with a sober mind? Never mind Kevin. You're an old dope. Your old hippy days are your way of life. You are an example of how the cognitive ability is at the bottom.

Take care Kevin ....it's too bad that no one cares about you enough to get you off the weed.

@zigzaghag ... need ALL 12 for an acquittal, otherwise the prosecutor simply retries the defendant after each mistrial until they get a conviction, or the defendant is bankrupt, or is tired of waiting in jail for a new trial, or violates their bail conditions by smoking pot ...

@BubbleBurster@One_Pro_Se Love your insistence clinging to your "proof", BubbleDweller! It's like your Benghazi guy on 60 minutes - disproven/debunked by his own statements, yet you insist what he lied about was true, because it supports your fabricated view of reality. Got to admire the stubborness, even though it's in the name of stupidity, hate and other dark reasons.

"What I have stated is up to date truthful facts. I can't say that about you"

you're not serious are you?? You posted one study from 2008 regarding cannabis and cancer, I posted 20 that occurred after, some by schools such as Harvard, yet you cling to your original posting as if nothing I have posted even exists. comical at best, sad when you stop to think about it.

You still haven't posted a single study or a single piece of any study ever done that suggests THC is "MIND ALTERING" as you continue to suggest.

Reason being, none actually exist.

"You don't see that you are suffering from the long term effects of the weed." Feel free to post any study that suggests such effects exist...I'll wait.

still waiting for anything to back up these claims..." Sexual dysfunction problems also an issue with the weed. Need I mention again that one joint is more harmful to your lungs than a pack of cigarettes? Yes, LEGITIMATE science has proven that FACT"

you can call it a fact if you feel better about yourself for doing it, but it doesn't make it true.

in FACT, all science including multiple patents PROVE you're a troll, and nothing more. you have absolutely nothing intelligent to say hear and you have proved it post after post.

I would be willing to bet this is the most conversation you've had in some time, enjoy it.

In case you haven't noticed, no one believes what you are saying, no one, not a single comment, not one. Get a clue.

I feel sorry for you. You still cling to nonsense and of course YOU call ME what YOU are. It's so typical when you can not address the truth. You don't see that you are suffering from the long term effects of the weed.

You remind me of Obama. You make Obama proud. He knows what he is doing by IGNORING federal law in states were losers need it to get through life. You do his bidding.

What I have stated is up to date truthful facts. I can't say that about you. I am sure your audience is cheering you on. They don't care,nor do I, what you say. All they want is the MIND ALTERING ASPECT of marijuana in their life for an escape.

As for you, you are nothing more than an addict that likes pseudo science that is totally unsubstantiated. You are blind. On that note, I leave you with your fantasies about marijuana.

Further backed up by the most recent Harvard study, not data you have presented here from the year 2008.

Clinical trial and collegiate study after study, all tests come to the same conclusion, cannabis causes apoptosis in cancer cells, or rather it causes them to self destruct. Cannabis kills cancer cells, period.

Nothing you can post disproves that, nothing.

See little fellow, it is my job to know more about cannabis than you. It's my job to know every word of the AMMA, better than people like you.

I'm the one that goes to public meetings to debate unfounded, ignorant claims like the ones you've tried to make here. Truth be told, I always prevail because I am always armed with the latest science and those debating me come prepared with outdated research and old rhetoric, much like you have here.

You can deny the extremely successful people I listed above until you're blue in the face, it won't change the fact that they are successful and smoke pot almost everyday if not more frequently.

You keep running back to the same study on cannabis because it's all you know, that is where your quest for truth ended. You stick with whatever was taught you as a child by your undoubtedly reefer madness rhetoric filled parents. Your brain accepted what you were told as true so that is where your cannabis education stopped. However the rest of the world continued to spin, and evolve, leading to more research that contradicts the previous data, as so often happens in science.

As has been suggested by several people here, you are clearly out of touch with the reality around you and in need of some additional counseling ;)

I wish you the best kid, I really do.

Sorry I was picking on you for your ignorance, it wasn't fair of me. Sorry I was baiting you into further conversations, conversations you had no chance of taking part in legitimately as you are unarmed with the proper knowledge to debate the topic at hand.

Sorry I used you just now to point out the rhetoric and un scientific data still floating around in today's misguided marijuana madness society.

The simple fact that you could only quote one study to support your claims should have been a clue to you that you might be wrong. Especially when 20 studies that contradict what your single study attempted, but failed to prove, all appear in a single article. The fact that you continued after that should had led me to the realization that you are in fact "mentally challenged" and incapable of participating in a rationale debate.

I'm sorry we picked on you. We should have just tried harder to educate you instead.

No. As usual you do not address FACTS and have reduced yourself to silly name calling -

"Still proving your ignorance?"

Be honest. Your pseudo propaganda driven "science" isn't being taken seriously. Just be a dope dealer and be happy. There are lots of dopes out there to make you "rich". Don't denigrate genuine science.

Your audience will believe ANYTHING as long as they have their MIND altering marijuana. They don't care if you tell them it will make them "virile" - LOL!

Sexual dysfunction problems also an issue with the weed. Need I mention again that one joint is more harmful to your lungs than a pack of cigarettes? Yes, LEGITIMATE science has proven that FACT.

Yes get high and escape life because you can't deal with reality! LOL! Intelligent sober people LAUGH at your feeble attempts to rationalize and justify more dopes out there.

Yes, I can believe you are viewed as some kind of an "authority" in OTHER turd world countries. They'd believe anything. I won't be wasting my time looking up ANYTHING written by YOU! LOL!

As I was saying,this may be NEW to you but the active ingredient delta-9-THC (marijuana's main active ingredient) has been available in a synthetic form for DECADES by a legitimate doctor's prescription.

Yes, since 1986 synthetic THC (Marinol) has been available as a Schedule II drug, which allows physicians to prescribe it under highly regulated conditions. Marinol is labeled officially as an anti-nauseate and an appetite stimulant, but doctors can and do prescribe it for other conditions, such as depression and muscle spasticity.I suppose with all your thoroughness, LOL, you were not aware of that. What was MISSING was the MIND ALTERING aspect of marijuana which is REALLY what dopes like YOU and others CRAVE.

Not only is dronabinol (Marinol®) readily avoable by a doctor's prescription, so is nabilone (Cesamet®). Both are the only FDA-approved, marijuana-based medications that doctors could prescribe for the treatment of nausea in patients undergoing cancer chemotherapy and to stimulate appetite in patients with wasting syndrome due to AIDS. These pills contained synthetic versions of THC, the main active ingredient in marijuana.

What has been consistent is the MIND ALTERING aspect of the drug that is LEFT OUT of the legal prescriptions is what you and other DOPES are proposing to legalize and does NOTHING to help a patient but perhaps lead them on to stronger drugs and DULLS their COGNITIVE ability. Losers that WANT this don't care about that - since they are unambitious and already threw in the towel. Nice of you to help their FURTHER DECLINE by lying about it being beneficial and of course under the guise of "compassion" LOL! Yeah, just like having an abortion for any reason at any time is "compassionate".

"In 1964, at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel, Dr. Raphael Mechoulam – along with his colleagues, Dr. Yehiel Gaoni and Dr. Haviv Edery – succeeded in the very first isolation and elucidation of the active constituent of cannabis, D9-tetrahydrocannabinol, also known as THC. The discovery of the THC compound – now almost 50 years ago – started a revolution in thinking about cannabis that carries on to this day.

Dr. Mechoulam is currently a professor of medicinal chemistry and natural products at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. His total synthesis of THC, as well as other cannabinoids such as cannabidiol (CBD), is the cornerstone of the burgeoning medical-cannabis industry. Furthermore, his major contributions in the field of organic chemistry and the interaction of human and plant biology have led to the discovery of cannabinoid receptors in the human brain and the endocannabinoid system in the human body."

Israel has been studying cannabis for much longer than the US, or anyone else for that matter.

This and numerous other HISTORICAL FACTS are what separate the intelligent from the willfully ignorant, or rather us from you.

I suppose if raping your dog was being done by lots of people behind closed doors or in the open, you'd believe that would be okay too - just because "lots of people are doing it". LOL! So much for your"logic"."

Rape a dog? Only someone as convoluted as you would even suggest such a comparison has the word "logic" involved.

Nice attempt at denying the obvious, cannabis use doesn't prevent people from becoming successful, people prevent people from becoming successful, not cannabis, and the list proves it. The fact that you try my great grandma's logic of "would you jump off a cliff if your friends did it" is relatively amusing. I'm a little past that in my days buddy.I have a six year old who is jumping at the bit to dismantle your silly little brains perception of cannabis however. I'm already bored with you and your pathetic attempts to downplay the topic at hand and discredit cannabis research that far surpasses the "research" you displayed. You're ignorance of the plant is quite clear, and from every perspective.

By the way, my six year old is laughing at you.. Dog raper! "Because only a dog rapeist would think of "rape" and "dog" in the same sentence, no normal person thinks that way right Daddy?!"

"Yes baby, you are correct. only a sick person would think of such a thing to begin with."

Denial of evidence? Lol , you posted outdated "research" and I am the one in denial here? Go ahead, deny the 20 clinical studies I posted and stick with the two you posted buddy.You like living in denial.You really are ignorant on the topic of which you speak, and have proven it over and over here.The federal government has patents on MMJ for a reason, it works. Contrary to your claims, cannabis protects cognitive brain function, not destroy it as you would have us believe.You sir, are an ignorant fool and clearly in need of some more cannabinoids in your life. I say "more" because your body produces cannabinoids naturally. The fact that you ignore your bodies endocannabinoid system is quite amusing to myself and everyone else reading this thread that knows anything about cannabis use and the human body. You like to point the denial finger at every other person in the conversation, how about you start with you next time..?If anyone is suffering from a paranoid psychosis problem, it is clearly you. Your obvious fear of cannabis is an unfounded, uneducated and completely delusional self fulfilling safety feature of your weak and feeble little brain. Try ingesting a small dose of cannabis, .004 Pico's should do it for someone like you.

NO doubt SOME of them ARE mentally impaired but the MAJORITY are rewritten history lies.

Yes, Bill Clinton did inhale despite his claiming NOT to have inhaled. He also had issues with cocaine. Obama did nearly everything imaginable. These two are nothing to be proud of - total losers and liars.

As I mentioned before, rewritten history and lies about others doesn't make it so nor does it make it right WHO did it. It's a pity that that you believe if people do it, it makes it okay.

It really doesn't matter WHO does it. It's still wrong and impairs you. That is why EMPLOYERS will NOT hire dopers. So list away if it makes YOU FEEL BETTER. I remain unimpressed and notice no denial of the FACTS of the many ways marijuana harms you.

I suppose if raping your dog was being done by lots of people behind closed doors or in the open, you'd believe that would be okay too - just because "lots of people are doing it". LOL! So much for your"logic". Honestly friend, lay off the weed and CLEAR YOUR HEAD!

While the ‘Sir’ in front of this guy’s name puts him in some very elite company, it doesn’t automatically get him on this list. What does earn him a spot is the fact that he’s the 236th richest person in the world, founder of the Virgin empire, which encompasses everything from airlines to record stores to cell phones, and made his entire multi-billion dollar fortune from absolutely nothing. Not only does this man smoke weed, he gets high with his 21-year-old son. He has publicly stated that there’s nothing wrong with smoking pot, has petitioned for the legalization of pot, and even said that if it were legal, he’d sell it.

Rick Steves

Your name doesn’t become synonymous with ‘European Travel’ by accident. You can’t just take a bong hit, lay back in your bean bag and toss off a few ‘graphs on how awesome the Louvre is. And yet here’s Rick Steves, author of 27 top selling European travel guides, host of his own TV show and radio show, and a very outspoken pothead. He’s a member of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, and credits pot for turning him into a better travel writer by opening his mind to new things.

Michael Phelps

Mr. “Has More Olympic Gold Medals Than Anyone In History” made headlines when photos of him and a bong surfaced. Since the scandal, Phelps has given a few interviews decrying his “bad judgment,” promising it was a dumb mistake that never happened before and won’t happen again… but we know that’s bullshit. This means that you can become the most world class athlete of all time and be a pot smoker at the same time. Stereotype shattered.

Michael Bloomberg

The Mayor of New York’s last name is associated with ‘business’ and ‘success’, not ‘failure’ and ‘the munchies’. But if you’re one of those idiots who believes a pothead could never amount to anything, you’d have never guessed this was the way Bloomberg would turn out. Did he smoke pot when he was younger? In his own words “You bet I did. And I enjoyed it!”

Ted Turner

Ted is a rare breed of billionaire — he comes off as completely absent minded, incapable of even putting on his own pants. Yet he is a mega-mogul. He single-handedly invented the 24-hour news cycle with CNN, was named Time’s Man of the Year in 1991, is the largest private land owner in America, and also owns a few other TV stations, and the Atlanta Braves. So… owning lots of stuff? Not what you’d expect from a guy who grew pot in his college dorm room. Ted is also a major funder of the Kentucky Hemp Museum, along with renowned stoner Woody Harelson, and is a well known fan of the classic stoner cartoon Scooby-Doo.